The top 10 dental discoveries of 2017

Dental research came a long way this year, and some studies stood out above the rest.

Antibiotics are prescribed by dentists for various treatments and the prevention of infection. And the rate of antibiotic prescribing by dentists seems to be increasing, according to a May 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Dental Association.

But what happens when, rather than preventing infections, those antibiotics end up causing infections in patients? According to research presented at IDWeek 2017 in San Diego, antibiotics prescribed by dentists may be contributing to a serious and potentially deadly infection.

According to the study, Clostridium difficile infections (C.diff) are the leading cause of health care-associated diarrhea. Two of the greatest risk factors for C.diff infections are antibiotic use and health care exposure.